What makes books ads stand out? It’s all about connecting with your target audience. Whether you’re running your ad on Amazon, Facebook or anywhere else, the right ad for a book grabs a reader and won’t let go until they press that “buy” button.
But how do you get there?
What does a good book ad look like?
- Good book ads are the ones that reach the right audience – the people who are ready for your book.
- Good book ads show up where those people hang out and are already talking (and buying).
- Good book ads get in front of these people at the right time.
When you create a good book ad on Facebook or Amazon, you sell more books because you’re talking to the right people at the right time. People want to talk back – and make a purchase.
The best book ad out there is one that makes a connection. That means spending some time understanding how to build an audience using Amazon and Facebook’s targeting tools. You can drill down in detail to make sure you are connecting with that ideal reader you’ve identified using their technology.
What is the goal of your book ads?
We recommend our clients stick with two fairly obvious but essential CTAs – short for “calls to action,” which just means the thing you want the person seeing the ad to do – depending on the platform and where they are in the publishing process.
For Facebook and Instagram, you can create an ad where the CTA is to purchase your book. But it’s a great use of your ad dollars to get folks to sign up for your email list. This lets you communicate with and nurture your ideal readers. It’s especially important to pursue this call to action in the months prior to your launch, so you can keep people updated on all your launch events and your pre-orders.
You also want to continue to grow your email list beyond your launch. You want your potential readers to know about your speaking engagements, book signings, guest blogs, podcast appearances and, of course, your next book! There is never a bad time to add people to your email list so you can speak directly to them.
For Amazon, of course, the only call to action is to make a purchase on the Amazon platform. These ads are highly effective at driving consumers who are already interested in spending money directly to your book. Keeping Amazon ads running throughout the life cycle of your book is a major boost for any author’s bottom line.
Good book ads start the conversation with the people who buy your books.
Ads are no longer just a “nice to have” for indie authors. Given the crowded digital landscape and the near-death of organic (aka unpaid) reach, every author needs to run – and understand – ads.
If you’re ready to learn more about building effective ads, check out the Ads for Authors workshop I did with indie author Kirsten Oliphant. She’s found her bestselling author dream thanks to well written ads, and she spent more than 90 minutes digging into how to master Amazon and Facebook ads as an indie author.
We go into:
- When, where and how to strategize your ads.
- How to build a great Amazon and Facebook ad to target your readers.
- Which ads are a good fit for you – and which aren’t!
We had a ton of fun talking about how to do this from the perspective of an actual working author, not a tech or marketing expert. I love that she speaks “our” language when it comes to how to create ads that SELL BOOKS.
Click here to check it out and take your ads to the next level!
